The Florida Atlantic University mens soccer team could not hold onto an early lead in a 2-1 overtime loss to Jacksonville on Friday night. I thought our boys battled hard, said head coach Kos Donev. We had three superb chances to secure the win late but we could not capitalize. Darnell King got the Owls (0-1) off to a good start in the 21st minute scoring an unassisted goal on a breakaway to put FAU on top 1-0. The Tampa native paced the Owls last season with six goals and 15 points. Despite falling behind early, the Dolphins (1-0) did not stay down for long. Three minutes after King gave FAU the lead, Darka Karamatic scored his first of two goals on the night, a free kick which beat keeper Jeremy Crumpton inside the left corner to tie the game at 1-1. Crumpton made three saves in net for the Owls during the game. Despite FAU outshooting Jacksonville 9-7 and recording five corner kicks in the second half, neither team could break the tie until overtime. Karamtic finished off the Owls seven minutes into the extra frame with his second goal of the night off a deflection from teammate Davide Faga. Faga was credited with the assist on the play and Jacksonville escaped with a dramatic victory. Even though we lost, I feel we progressed as a team tonight, Donev said. The boys applied what we have been teaching them in practice and I look forward to our next match. The Owls will have the weekend off before getting back to action on Labor Day Monday with another in-state road test against UCF. FAU returns to Boca Raton for their first home match of the season next Friday night against Georgia State.
